A New Class #3
A New Class #3
Ah, shit, you scared the crap out of me.
Haven't seen this bastard in forever and it pops up without even blinking. Always just showing up whenever it damn well feels like it. So... a quest appeared because I remembered an incident, is that it?
I don't know much, but this status window seems like a son of a bitch that knows me inside and out.
This time it must've appeared because I've been collecting fragments and recovering memories.
"..."
I closed my eyes for a moment, pretending to stretch, and read through the notification window hovering in my vision.
[Villains are staging an attack]
[Defeat the hostile villains]
[Reward - ??? Coin]
The hell?
It's giving coin but the amount is all question marks? The hell's this bastard trying to hand out... Anyway, coin.
I've thought about this a lot, but it's still unclear exactly how coin makes me stronger.
I can't even understand the concept of the quests and rewards themselves—it's shady as hell. What does it know, and how, to boost my power?
As far as my memories go, I was originally a person of this world. I met my end when it was destroyed, somehow got reborn on Earth and lived a decent life, then ended up coming back here.
There's nothing in those memories about a status window or anything like that. In the end, this is a power granted by... whatever being brought me back here. If that's the case, does getting stronger through coin also follow from that?
"..."
While thinking that, I pulled up more detailed memories about this whole situation. Shady or not, if it's a way to get stronger, I've gotta use it. Not like I haven't been doing exactly that all along.
[Paradise Ascension Path]
There.
When I focused on my memories, a keyword surfaced, vague but distinct.
And the memories branching off from it.
"Ah."
Memories of the apocalypse... I was roughly recalling them.
The world was getting more and more fucked as time went on.
The Second Dimension War broke out, and monsters and villains ran rampant. And on top of that, those cultist bastards rose up, believing in their own dreams just like the others.
The ones who called themselves the Paradise Ascension Path are the same. That's it, right here. Those bastards are the ones spreading that Special Drug right now. A vicious drug that turns humans into monsters and hooks them into their shady cult.
Right now, those bastards are setting up shop to operate here on Korean soil. I remember that during the apocalypse, we heroes fought disgustingly endless battles against civilians who'd fallen into cults, too.
"..."
Obviously, we have to stop it.
But... how?
With just a quest alone. And some vague, half-remembered past, can I actually do anything about it? It's different from the fragments. Fragments are like mini-dungeons. You go in, smash everything up, and come back. But this insane shit is something I...
"Kim Geun-cheol? Are you tired? You suddenly just put your head down and ignored everything."
"Hmm?"
Leona's voice suddenly roused me from my thoughts.
"Ah, guess I pushed myself too hard playing vice-president. Feels like I ran out of steam."
"Hmm, is that so? Then go lie down on the sofa over there. You'll feel better after a short rest."
"Nah. I have to go train now. Can't just laze around. Train hard, go home, and get some proper rest. That's the way."
"That's Kim Geun-cheol for you!"
So, let's go train.
"Let's get up."
We all got up to head to training. As we did, I asked Yu-ri.
"Hey, Yu-ri. If you ran into drug-related villains on the street, what would you do?"
"Obviously beat the shit out of every last one of them."
A slightly curt voice.
Yu-ri, who'd said that, closed her mouth for a second, then spoke again.
"If we find them, let's beat the fuck out of them together."
"Man, you're talking like we're just gonna go dine and dash or something."
"Till they can't even breathe, you know? Pow-pow. You know? Like, bam-bam. You know?"
Yu-ri, now in full joking mode, was throwing jabs and kicks into the air and letting out energy. Seems she felt bad about getting annoyed earlier when we talked about drugs.
* * *
Training ended, and we went back to the dorm.
"Oof, Si-hoo. I'm gonna head in early and rest today."
"What's this? Kim Geun-cheol of all people suddenly has no energy?"
"Used up too much of my vice-presidential power..."
"There you go with the vice-president this and that again. Alright. Get some good rest."
I made that excuse to Si-hoo, changed into some casual clothes, and then sneaked out of the dorm.
"Alright."
If I head out and snoop around, something might come to mind. The timing is perfect, since the quest just popped up. It's still early evening, so how about I patrol the area a bit?
Based on the pattern, the chances are high that something will occur to me or the quest will update while I'm wandering around.
I jogged quickly toward the downtown area.
"Hm."
The streets are pretty normal.
Since it's still evening, all sorts of shops are lit up and open for business. Of course, the atmosphere isn't entirely ordinary.
Just looking at the road, there's an armored vehicle parked, and armed armored police are patrolling. The mood lately is anything but calm, so the conscripts are just getting run ragged.
And even civilians' fashion has shifted toward a more practical look. Trends change like that, don't they?
Likewise, I could see quite a few private armed security guards hired by businesses.
"..."
It's still really nothing right now. Citizens are thinking this special situation will eventually resolve and things will return to normal, but a massive crisis is going to blow up before long.
Will I really be able to stop that disaster with my own strength?
Lost in those musings, I wandered through the back alleys—the sorts of places where drug-related criminals might be.
"..."
"..."
"..."
And sure enough, if it's a back alley, you start to see groups of people just squatting in the dark spaces between buildings, killing time. Whether they're dead drunk, some delinquent kids, homeless people... they're just those kinds of guys, probably.
I was about to ignore them and walk past.
"What's this?"
One group of guys who'd been sitting there suddenly slid to their feet and started talking to me.
"Hey. Hold on a sec."
"Hey man, lend us some money."
"Just... just a little. Lend us a little."
I looked, and they're high-school kids.
And not just any kids—well-fed, well-grown saplings of the new generation. Seeing them approach me as a group, it looks like they need some quick cash real bad. This is the kind of thing I absolutely have to lend a hand with.
"Lend you money? How much do you need?"
Two sunken eyes.
"About a hundred thousand won."
"Yeah, that'd be good."
"We'll pay you back by next week. Just lend us a hundred thousand."
That's way too much money.
"I don't have that kind of cash. No joke, I've only got two hundred won."
Surely they won't ask me for that, right.
"Come on, don't be like that... we know you're lying."
"Let us just check your wallet. We'll only borrow a little."
"Look, we go to school. We can pay you back by next week."
Naturally, they kept walking toward me, still spouting nonsense.
Are these bastards really just delinquent kids who need money?
Or are they drug-related criminals?
Judging by those sunken eyes, it's suspicious.
Whatever they are, I can't just let it slide as a superhuman.
"You bastards say you want to borrow money, so why the hell are you checking my wallet?!"
"Uh? Aaagh!"
—KWA-BANG!
I smacked the guy across the face, sending him flying into the wall and crashing into a garbage heap. I'll be exercising my superhuman investigative authority from here on out.
"Uh, uhh?! What the hell!"
"Crazy...!"
While the panicked kids were wobbling back and forth, deciding whether to save their friend or run—
"Hold still! From this moment, every bastard who moves is a criminal!"
My fist slammed into another one's face.
—KWA-BANG!
"Urghk!"
"Aaaaaaagh! Run away!"
"Aaaaaaaagh! Fuck!"
And I lightly chased down the ones running away, grabbed them by the hair, and slammed them onto the ground.
"Heuk! Save me! Save me! I didn't know you were a superhuman!"
I don't really feel any villain-like power from them.
Are they just simple delinquent students? No, there's a chance kids like these could have gotten their hands on drugs and are distributing them. I've heard there are even student dealers these days. In America, I hear corporate-style gangs have even infiltrated schools and are running their own internal drug shops.
"If I wasn't a superhuman, you'd have 'borrowed' real well, huh! You bastards are druggies, aren't you!"
Let's do a little investigation.
"No! No, we're not!"
"What d'you mean, 'not'! I can see it in your eyes, I know everything! Alright, you're all coming with me! You know about the special drug crime investigation going on these days? Let's go get you investigated!"
"Aaaaaaagh!"
That was the moment—while I was exercising moderate violence for investigative purposes and enjoying this amicable communication.
—Slide.
Behind me, some shadow, uh?
"Gah!"
Quick judgment.
I immediately tossed the kids behind me and spun around. Did I seriously just run straight into an actual villain? If so, I'm gonna have to grab these bastards and get us out of here.
Today was supposed to be just covert recon, so I only brought a dagger.
A city center escape should be easy enough anyway.
The moment I finished that thought and looked at the other person's face, I tilted my head.
"No, you're...?!"
"We meet again, here of all places."
"Agent Ham Woong-cheol?"
"Correct. You're Kim Geun-cheol."
His identity was none other than Agent Ham Woong-cheol of the Special Operations Division, a guy built like the Terminator, all frame and muscle.
What's this awkward bastard doing here?
"Why in the world are you in a place like this?"
"That's what I'd like to ask you. Cadet Kim Geun-cheol. Why are you here?"
"Ah, that's."
I explained immediately.
"I heard from Ryu A-ra that villain criminals are running rampant. How could I just sit still after hearing that? So I came out to check things out at night. What about you, Ham Woong-cheol?"
"Is that so. I'm just out working, same as usual. I see. Ryu told you... Hm."
Woong-cheol, rubbing his chin, said,
"Well... I'm sorry about what happened back then. I'll apologize again."
"Ah, never mind, that's all in the past."
Sure, I still hold a bit of a grudge, but I'm not about to make a big deal out of it. I'm an adult, after all. And even when he apologizes with that giant frame, it's still just threatening. Best not to bring up that subject at all.
Wait, though.
A Special Ops agent in an alleyway?
"But wait. Don't tell me. Is there actually a villain crime happening in a place like this?"
Considering a Special Operations agent is here, it's a dead giveaway.
"Something like that. Just so happens, I nabbed one today too. I was wondering what was going on, and I see you, Kim Geun-cheol. Ah, of course. I have no intention of giving you grief over it. I'm only asking you to be a bit more careful."
He said he was asking.
"You may have already heard, but this type of crime has exploded lately. A major announcement might even come out soon. Right now, only Special Ops and a few Clans have been deployed, but honestly, I see it expanding."
"Yes."
"And. If you want to do investigations, it'd be better to get trained first. Don't go poking around recklessly."
"You mean those delinquents?"
—Slide.
He nodded.
"Because you can tail guys like that and maybe snag a lead. Leave this kind of thing to us."
To put it simply, he's saying I lack expertise, so I should go home, wash my feet, and go to sleep. It's so right that I can't even argue. I only came out for a walk anyway, so that was my plan from the start.
"Understood. But you said you caught one?"
"Yeah. But while arrests are frequent... more often, they're just low-level grunts with zero intel. We need to grab a proper one. Anyway. Stuff like this has been on the rise lately, so be careful."
"I'll do that."
"Hm."
Well then, time to part ways—
"You. Get in my car."
Suddenly, Agent Woong-cheol dropped that line!
"Huhgh! What's this! Don't tell me you're gonna Woong-cheol me?!"
"What's that supposed to mean?"